This list of authors of the Bible gives the traditional and modern scholarly views. The books of the Old Testament are listed according to their order in the Jewish Tanakh.
Table[]
Old Testament[]
(This table follows the canon of the Hebrew bible. The various Christian canons - Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox - differ significantly, both in the books regarded as biblical and in the order in which they are presented)
| Book | Author according to traditional thought |
Author according to modern thought |
|---|---|---|
| Genesis | Moses: A few early authors, notably Josephus and Philo, believed that Moses wrote the entire Torah, including the account of his own death; later Talmudic scholars felt it more likely that this section at least was written by another. The problem of Genesis, to which Moses was not an eyewitness, also gave rise to alternative theories, expressed in the Oral Torah and the midrashim. | Documentary hypothesis: Various unnamed editors combining originally complete and independent documents;[1] OR Supplementary hypothesis: Various anonymous authors making additions (supplements) to a base text; OR Fragmentary hypothesis: Single unknown author drawing on multiple documentary and oral sources. |
| Exodus | ||
| Leviticus | ||
| Numbers | ||
| Deuteronomy | ||
| Joshua | Joshua with a portion by Phinehas or Eleazar | Deuteronomist using material from the Yahwist and Elohist |
| Judges | Samuel | Deuteronomist |
| 1 Samuel | Samuel, Gad, and Nathan | Deuteronomist or a combination of a Jerusalem source, republican source, the court history of David, the sanctuaries source, the monarchial source, and the material of various editors who combined these sources |
| 2 Samuel | ||
| 1 Kings | Jeremiah[2] | Deuteronomist |
| 2 Kings | ||
| 1 Chronicles | Ezra | The Chronicler, writing between 450 and 435 BC, after the Babylonian captivity |
| 2 Chronicles | ||
| Ezra | Ezra | The Chronicler, writing between 450 and 435 BC, after the Babylonian captivity |
| Nehemiah | Nehemiah using some material by Ezra | The Chronicler, writing between 450 and 435 BC, after the Babylonian captivity |
| Tobit | A writer in the second century BC | |
| Judith | Eliakim (Joakim), the high priest of the story | |
| Esther | The Great Assembly using material from Mordecai | An unknown author writing between 460 and 331 BC |
| 1 Maccabees | A devout Jew from the Holy Land. | An unknown Jewish author, writing around 100 BC |
| 2 Maccabees | Based on the writing of Jason of Cyrene | An unknown author, writing in the second or first century BC |
| 3 Maccabees | An Alexandrian Jew writing in Greek in the first century BC or first century AD | |
| 4 Maccabees | Josephus | An Alexandrian Jew writing in the first century BC or first century AD |
| Job | Moses | A writer in the 4th century BC. |
| Psalms | Mainly David and also Asaph, sons of Korah, Moses, Heman the Ezrahite, Ethan the Ezrahite and Solomon | Various authors recording oral tradition. Portions from 1000BC to 200BC. |
| Proverbs | Solomon, Agur son of Jakeh, Lemuel and other wise men | An editor compiling from various sources well after the time of Solomon |
| Ecclesiastes | Solomon | A Hebrew poet of the third or second centuries BC using the life of Solomon as a vista for the Hebrews' pursuit of Wisdom. An unknown author in Hellenistic period from two older oral sources (Eccl1:1-6:9 which claims to be Solomon, Eccl6:10-12:8 with the theme of non-knowing) |
| Song of Solomon | Solomon | |
| Ruth | Samuel | A later author, writing after the time of David |
| Wisdom | Solomon | An Alexandrian Jew writing during the Jewish Hellenistic period |
| Sirach | Jesus the son of Sirach of Jerusalem | |
| Isaiah | Isaiah | Three main authors and an extensive editing process. Is1-39 "Historical Isaiah" with multiple layers of editing. Is40-55 Exilic & Is56-66 post-exilic. |
| Jeremiah | Jeremiah | Baruch ben Neriah.[3] Chapters 1-6 and 10-23 seem to derive from Jeremiah himself, as dictated to Baruch.[4] |
| Lamentations | Jeremiah | Disputed and perhaps based on the older Mesopotamian genre of the "city lament", of which the Lament for Ur is among the oldest and best-known |
| Letter of Jeremiah | Jeremiah | A Hellenistic Jew living in Alexandria |
| Baruch | Baruch ben Neriah | An author writing during or shortly after the period of the Maccabees |
| Ezekiel | Ezekiel | Disputed, with varying degrees of attribution to Ezekiel |
| Daniel | Daniel | An editor in the fourth century to mid-second century BC |
| Hosea | Hosea | |
| Joel | Joel | |
| Amos | Amos | |
| Obadiah | Obadiah | |
| Jonah | Jonah | A post-exilic (after 530 BC) author writing under the name of the 8th century prophet |
| Micah | Micah | The first three chapters by Micah and the remainder by a later writer |
| Nahum | Nahum | |
| Habakkuk | Habakkuk | |
| Zephaniah | Zephaniah | Disputed; possibly a writer after the time period indicated by the text |
| Haggai | Haggai | |
| Zechariah | Zechariah | Zechariah (chapters 1-8); the later remaining designated Deutero-Zechariah, were possibly written by disciples of Zechariah |
| Malachi | Malachi or Ezra | Possibly the author of Deutero-Zechariah |
New Testament[]
| Book | Author according to traditional thought |
Author according to modern thought |
|---|---|---|
| Matthew | Matthew the Evangelist is said by the early 2nd century writer Papias to have written a "Sayings of Jesus" in Aramaic. The Gospel is not a sayings collection and shows clear signs of having been composed in Greek, but it is accepted by tradition as the document referred to by Papias. Dated c.80-100 AD. | An anonymous author who borrowed from both Mark and a source called Q |
| Mark | Mark the Evangelist, otherwise known as John Mark, a cousin of Barnabas the companion of Paul and later himself a companion of Paul. According to the 4th century writer Eusebius, who claims to be quoting a lost work by the early 2nd century author Papias, Mark was asked to write his account by the Christians of Rome, and recorded the preaching of the apostle Peter. (The First Epistle of Peter, dated around 100 AD, mentions Mark as a companion of Peter). Usually dated no earlier than AD 70. | An unknown author. |
| Luke | Luke the Evangelist, the companion and contemporary of Paul. The earliest representation of Luke as the author of this Gospel (and of Acts) comes from the Muratorian Canon, a catalogue of the New Testament from c.180 AD. The Gospel itself is usually dated 70-100 AD. | An anonymous author who borrowed from both Mark and a source called Q |
| John | John the Evangelist. The Church father Iranaeus reported c.180 AD that the Evangelist was John the Apostle, but there is no earlier record of the tradition that the two were identical. The first evidence of the existence of the Gospel dates from the mid 2nd century. | An anonymous author with no direct connection to the historical Jesus Jn 21 finished after death of primary author by follower(s) |
| Acts | Luke the Evangelist | The author of Luke |
| Romans | Paul the Apostle | Paul the Apostle |
| 1 Corinthians | ||
| 2 Corinthians | ||
| Galatians | ||
| Ephesians | Paul the Apostle | Paul the Apostle or edited dictations from Paul |
| Philippians | Paul the Apostle | Paul the Apostle |
| Colossians | Paul the Apostle | Disputed; perhaps Paul coauthoring with Timothy |
| 1 Thessalonians | Paul the Apostle | Paul the Apostle |
| 2 Thessalonians | Paul the Apostle | An associate or disciple after his death, representing what they believed was his message[5] |
| 1 Timothy | Paul the Apostle | Perhaps someone associated with Paul, writing at a later date |
| 2 Timothy | Paul the Apostle | Perhaps someone associated with Paul, writing after his death |
| Titus | Paul the Apostle | Perhaps someone associated with Paul, writing after his death |
| Philemon | Paul the Apostle | Paul the Apostle |
| Hebrews | Paul the Apostle or possibly Luke the Evangelist, Clement of Rome or Barnabas | An unknown author, but almost certainly not Paul[6] |
| James | James the Just | A writer in the late first or early second centuries, after the death of James the Just |
| 1 Peter | Peter | An author, perhaps Silas, proficient with Greek writing |
| 2 Peter | Peter | Certainly not Peter[7] |
| 1 John | John the Evangelist | An unknown author with no direct connection to the historical Jesus Same as Gospel of John. |
| 2 John | John the Evangelist | An unknown author with no direct connection to the historical Jesus Final Editor of Jn 21 |
| 3 John | John the Evangelist | An unknown author with no direct connection to the historical Jesus Final Editor of Jn 21 |
| Jude | Jude the Apostle or Jude, brother of Jesus | A pseudonymous work written between the end of the first century and the first quarter of the 2nd century |
| Revelation of Christ to John | John the Apostle or John the Elder[4] | Perhaps John of Patmos |
See also[]
References[]
- Gledhill, Tom. The Message of the Song of Songs. InterVarsity Press: 1994.
- Kidner, Derek. The Message of Ecclesiastes. InterVarsity Press: 1984.
Notes[]
- ↑ From the Introduction to Richard Elliot Friedman's The Bible with Sources Revealed, 2003.
- ↑ Who were the authors of the books of the Bible?
- ↑ Miller, Stephen M., Huber, Robert V. (2004). The Bible: A History. Good Books. pp. page 33. ISBN 1561484148.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Harris, Stephen L., Understanding the Bible. Palo Alto: Mayfield. 1985.
- ↑ Ehrman, Bart D. (2004). The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings. New York: Oxford, p.385; Beverly Roberts Gaventa, First and Second Thessalonians, Westminster John Knox Press, 1998, p.93; Vincent M. Smiles, First Thessalonians, Philippians, Second Thessalonians, Colossians, Ephesians, Liturgical Press, 2005, p.53; Udo Schnelle, translated by M. Eugene Boring, The History and Theology of the New Testament Writings (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1998), pp. 315-325; M. Eugene Boring, Fred B. Craddock, The People's New Testament Commentary, Westminster John Knox Press, 2004 p652; Joseph Francis Kelly, An Introduction to the New Testament for Catholics, Liturgical Press, 2006 p.32
- ↑ http://religion-online.org/showchapter.asp?title=531&C=563 Richard Heard, Introduction To The New Testament
- ↑ Carson, D.A., and Douglas J. Moo. An Introduction to the New Testament, second edition. HarperCollins Canada; Zondervan: 2005. ISBN 0310238595, ISBN 978-0310238591. p.659.